BOOK INFO

Recommended Read!

“Worth the Wait, lives up to its name.”
~ Under the Covers

I need to start off by saying that Joey Hill was my introduction to the world of BDSM erotica many years ago. Her Vampire Queen series blew me away and when I found myself needing to delve into this world in more depth, the Nature of Desire series was where I turned. I couldn’t have asked for a more talented author to lead the way. Joey set my standard incredibly high from the get-go. This series has moved me to tears of sadness, relief, and joy on many an occasion. It’s opened my eyes to pairings I might not have had a natural interest in reading beforehand. It is unique, soul-wrenching and authentic. The ninth installment, Worth the Wait, lives up to its name.

Julie is approaching 40 and has all but given up on finding her soulmate. All she’s experienced is disappointment and she decides she’s putting any thought of a love life on the back burner when she agrees to help her best friend get an erotic theater production off its feet in North Carolina. She runs a small community theater in New York City and welcomes the change in scenery. Julie has a budding interest in BDSM, feels she has submissive tendencies. Here she can feel free to explore. Enter Desmond Hayes, a roofer hired to make repairs to the theater’s structure. In the BDSM world, he’s well known as a rigger, a rope suspension artist and a very charismatic Dom that never gets close to the subs he scenes with. Des has his personal reasons for keeping his distance. Despite this, he’s known as a consummate professional, a caring and focused Dom, who always keeps his subs’ best interests and safety at the forefront. Sparks fly when he and Julie meet, and it seems that neither can resist the pull of a force stronger than their fears.

Watching Julie and Des’ relationship evolve was pure joy. The chemistry at their first meeting was mesmerizing. Joey writes characters with such authentic emotion that you can’t help but be sucked into the story. I find it hard sometimes to characterize why I love her writing style so much, but simply put, she moves me in ways few authors are able to do. It’s in the way she sets a scene, with care and attention to detail, the way she captures each nuance of internal struggle and emotion, the way she resolves that tension in the least cliché way possible, that keep me coming back for more. Rope suspension isn’t a particular draw for me, but my eyes were opened to its beauty as an art form and way to enhance intimacy between a Dom and his/ her submissive. The D/s dynamics here are good for beginners to the BDSM world. There is focus on the psychology of BDSM, the joy of submission, of giving up control, but not heavy on the masochistic end. The cast of the production was one of a kind and unforgettable and the recurring characters from previous books enhanced the fun. Such great dialog that flows naturally across the page. Joey is known for old, well-loved characters popping up in her books and even cross-series appearances on occasion. I’m always on the lookout. That being said, this is absolutely a great standalone. If you’re new to the Nature of Desire series, Worth the Wait will be the perfect intro to Joey Hill’s captivating voice. If you’re already a fan, you’ll not be disappointed. This series is as good as it’s ever been, now 12 years in!

EXCERPT

Several ropes were hanging from the support beams above the stage, with hooks attached to the ends of the lines. Maybe she should have brought Madison. What did she really know about Desmond? What was he going to do with those hooks?

He stopped, perhaps feeling her hesitation. “Anything you want to talk about, we can,” he said. “If you change your mind about having someone here, we can do it another night when you can give Madison some advance warning. We can go get a pizza or something.”

Julie swallowed. “No. I think I made the right decision. What I need… I need your help feeling right about it.”

At his quizzical expression, she colored. “It’s going to sound stupid, but when we were looking at the orchids at the Conservancy, you had this way of tapping into what I am… I mean, what I felt. It made it okay. I think I would have let you do anything to me right then.”

His jaw muscles flexed, suggesting her bald admission had elicited a primal response, barely held back. She felt it in the strength of his grip on her hand, but he only said, “Okay.”

Pressing his shirt in her hands, he tilted his head down so they both looked at the cloth bunched in her grip. “At the end of our session tonight, I’m going to put my shirt on you.”

The worn cloth was soft, and she resisted the female urge to lift it to her nose to smell. Hard and strong he was. Broad chested, not so much. She glanced down at her D-cup breasts. “I don’t think this is going to fit.”

“We’ll button what we can. I think the effect will be interesting.”

He took the shirt from her, walked it over to the table and left it draped over the pack. Moving to the side stage, he drew back the curtains. As they retracted, he revealed the darkened theater, the empty chairs.

He returned to her, a masculine figure moving through alternating shadows and shafts of light. Any words she’d planned to say dried up. He didn’t tell her to be quiet; his expression and body language did.

Turning her to face the front of the stage, he put his hands on her shoulders. “Close your eyes. Feel the theater breathing like you talked about. Imagine there are a few hundred people out there, all silent and waiting, watching. Each of them imagining themselves in either your shoes or mine, or both, bringing their own personal stories to life in a million different ways. We inspire their imaginations, but we’re also oblivious to them, because that’s the point.”

His lips brushed her ear, making her shiver. “There’s being a story and telling one, and this is being a story. If the crowd stirs, even just a little, I’ll silence them with a look, a raised hand. I won’t permit anything to distract you or intrude on your experience. That’s part of my job, part of what you can trust me to do.”

It had been years since she’d performed on a stage, so it was peculiar to feel a bit of stage fright as he created an imaginary audience watching them.

“Everyone is quiet. Now it’s just us.”

His captivating voice, too deep for his frame, too compelling for an individual who looked like a roadie, held her in place. Through the touch of his hand, the stroke of his voice, he evolved into the Dominant she’d felt on their first meeting and in that unforgettable moment at the orchid garden.

She told herself it was just performance. He possessed that incredible charisma that incited crushes from so many actresses for their leading man, even when he was a total dick outside the role he played onstage. She didn’t have that risk of being crushed by reality. They’d set the boundaries. She could be swept up in her own character, enjoy it without losing perspective.

But he’d said he couldn’t let her hold herself apart. This wasn’t a performance with a review write-up tomorrow. This was intended to be an experience.

He swept his hands down her arms and back up to her shoulders, his fingers caressing her throat. She swayed and he closed the gap between them.

“When I do a scene, my submissive is the center. She’s everything.”

He removed the barrette from her hair so it spilled over his hands. He combed through the thick locks, tugging harder with each pass, scraping it all together as if he was going to create a ponytail. Only instead he loosened his grip, spread her hair back on her shoulders, then did it all over again, digging into her nape, her scalp, mixing force with the tug. Her eyes had closed again and she was swaying with his motions, a spiral of reaction inside and out.

“I’m going to undress you, Julie,” he whispered. “I want you to feel my hands on you, get you used to me touching you, taking control. All right?”

As she’d said, there was little modesty in theater. She didn’t see her body as a glowing treasure that had to be hidden until some presto moment where she’d reveal it to an awestruck lover. It was just a body. They were all sizes and shapes, and fit society’s definition of beauty at different levels, but in the end, a body was a body. Everyone had one.

On the other hand, her body had never been unwrapped as if it was a treasure. A far different experience from matter-of-factly stripping off outer garb while cast and crew members passed by like orbiting planets.

READING ORDER & BUY LINKS

Click on the covers to buy the books

About Joey W. Hill

Joey W. Hill writes about vampires, mermaids, boardroom executives, cops, witches, angels, simple housemaids... If there’s an erotic love story to be told, she’ll take the plunge. As a result, she's proud and humbled to have five series and over thirty award-winning and highly acclaimed titles, as well as the support and enthusiasm of a wonderful and widely diverse readership. In 2011, she was awarded a Career Achievement award in Erotica by RTBookReviews.

According to her personal memo book, seen only by her eyes--probably because it would reveal that she loves the Partridge Family and the movie Pure Country--the top three ways to ensure her readers continue to come looking for her books are #1 Write a great story, #2 KEEP writing great stories and #3 “For the love of God, don’t let them get to know the author – that will scare them away.” (Particularly if they find out about the Partridge Family.)

She has become known for writing the type of erotic romance that not only wins her fans of that genre, but readers who would “never” read BDSM romance. That’s because first and foremost, she thinks what attracts a reader is strong characters.

“Whatever genre you’re writing, if the characters are compelling and sympathetic, the readers are going to want to see what happens to them. While I strive to make sure my work includes essential elements of the storytelling craft – tight plot, engaging dialogue, etc. – if the character development isn’t there, there isn’t much point in reading. It can be the coolest plot ever, but if the reader could care less whether the hero or heroine survive (in fact, in some cases you may be rooting for their destruction just so you can be done with the darn thing), then it’s not a story worth reading.”

Why is that? She believes that our world is an ironically isolating one. Humans have overrun the planet, armed with a plethora of communication tools. Yet we feel very alone in our own heads, trying to make a connection with someone. The “ah, there you are – where have you been?” person. The person who gives us an anchor, but also the courage to release our tedious baggage to embrace ourselves fully.

That’s what she seeks to accomplish in every story. Bringing characters together who have numerous emotional obstacles standing in their way, watching them reach a soul-deep understanding of one another through the expression of their darkest sexual needs, and then growing from that understanding into love.

What did you think of our review?Let us know your thoughts in the comment box below!

I’m a 30-something medical professional by day and obsessive Crossfitter by night who’s been in love with the written word since I can remember.And that means that I read every Nancy Drew and Nancy Drew Files until I snuck Stephen King’s It from my father’s bookshelf at age 10.I was never the same… I read voraciously for years, until academic pursuits derailed me, but re-entered the fray 8 years ago when a certain teen paranormal series caught my attention.The passion back, I haven’t stopped since.When I’m not working, working out, or traipsing around for my teenage son’s hectic activity schedule, you can find me with Kindle in hand, often until the wee hours of the night.

I’m well known to be a genre hopper, who has very few hard limits.My first real romance series was J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood and she still rocks my paranormal world, along with Karen Moning’s Fever series and Joey Hill’s Vampire Queen series.That being said, you’ll often see me reading erotic romance with a BDSM focus.I’m never afraid of dark and dubious reads a la Joey Hill, Tiffany Reisz and Cari Silverwood.When genre fatigue sets in, a witty historical romance never fails to satisfy me, and Lisa Kleypasand Sarah MacLeanare my auto-buys.My favorite series of all time is Diana Gabaldon’s Outlader saga, and I will fight for Jamie Fraser to the death ;). Much to my fellow romance readers’ surprise, I also cleanse my palate with popular contemporary reads.Romantic suspense.LGBT.Western.If the writing is on, I’ll dig in.

I didn’t know that Joey writes m/f as well as m/m–this one sounds great!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Lol – oh heavens, hon, I write it all – M/m, F/f/m, M/f/M, M/f, F/m, contemporary AND paranormal…my muse is all over the place. :>

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Jennifer, thank you so very much. Humbled, flattered and over the moon all at once. SO delighted you loved Des and Julie!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Jolanda L

Great review . Thank you

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Darynda

Joey is fantastic! Thanks for this review!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Amy R

Sounds good, this series has been on my wishlist for while.

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Oh and Jennifer, since everyone loves free stuff, I’ll mention for those who are already fans of the series (or hopefully soon to become, lol), there are free shorts and novellas revisiting the characters in the Nature of Desire series. I write these types of things as a thank you to my readers (and to give myself a chance to hang out with my favorite characters again in more informal settings – grin). There’s one called Tyler Tied Up about Marguerite & Tyler of Ice Queen/Mirror of My Soul, and The Baby Shower about Mac and Violet of Natural Law,… Read more »

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Esther Gerdzen

Great review !

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Heather Fowler

I’m a maniac for Joey’s Vampire Queen series. I’d love to give her contemporaries a shot! Thanks for doing the giveaway!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Heather, would love to know what you think when you try one. Hope you enjoy them as much as the vampires, but if not, there will be more vampires coming (beaming).

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Elizabeth

Thanks for the excerpt…great cover

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Stephanie F.

Ms. Hill was my introduction into BDSM as well. She is a favorite author and this is a great series. Wonderful review and excerpt.

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Kalliope D.

Great review and excerpt! 😉
Thank you so much for this awesome giveaway!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Mary Preston

This sounds like a read I will enjoy.

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Nancy Jones

I can’t wait to read this one. Thanks for the excerpt.

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Andra

I enjoyed reading the review. I have to start with the first book. I don’t know how I missed this series. 🙂

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Andra, I hope you enjoy the series when you get to it. You can read Worth the Wait as a standalone if you prefer, however, because many of the books in the series are structured that way (beaming). Rough Canvas is the only one I recommend reading ahead of time just to enhance appreciation of the book, because it’s where Julie is first introduced (and Marcus/Thomas are the main characters, her two best friends who also appear in Worth the Wait a lot), but it’s not entirely necessary. But I completely understand and respect the desire to read a series… Read more »

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Cari Silverwood

Beautiful review. Joey Hill is one of my favorite authors too. I don’t read erotic stories much anymore, but this one sounds so tempting!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Laura Lovejoy Brunk

I love Joey’s books and cant wait for this one. Thanks for the great review !

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Thank you so much, Laura!! Hope you like Julie and Des as much as you’ve enjoyed the previous books!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Sue G.

This sounds interesting. Thanks!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Diana Doan

Great review! Joey is a new author to me!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Aly P

I’m reading the book now and I’m agreeing with everything you just said. JWH has such a way of drawing you iinto the story… she’s amazing

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Aly, that’s a wonderful compliment. Thank you!! Hope you enjoy it that way through the end!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Aly P

I did! You are SO amazing!
I loved the Knight reference 😀 WIll we see more books in that series? *fingers corssed*

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Joey W Hill

Aly, alas, we are all done with the Knights of the Board Room, though we do have those two free download novellas at the JWH Connection fan forum (Retribution, the prequel with Celeste, and The Proper Punishment, Ben and Peter’s threesome with Dana – storywitch.com/community). And I’m sure they’ll make guest appearances in future books! :> Thanks again!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

jodi marinich

wow sounds great

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

lea

Sounds awesome!

Vote Up0Vote Down Reply

2 years ago

Guest

Amy Pollard Woolard

Love, Love, Love this post!!! I cannot wait to read this book!! Putting this one at the top of my list!!